Paul v



nom a -j) w P. ,VON JANKG.

KEY BOARD FOR MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS.

No. 360,255. Patented Mar. 29 -1887 M \vm%\ mwmm I llllIIIINIIII:iilllilllllilllllllll'lillllllIllll'lllllllNI LVLLLLLLLL Fla. 7

. 'CD E'F*7G# As "cgd e a r 0- Inventor W I W U vow Jan/k0 uma m her Wuhmgion u a UNITED STATES PAUL VON JANKO, OF TOTIS, AUSTRIA-HUNGARY.

PATENT OFFICE.

KEY-BIOARD FOR MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 360,255, dated ldarch 29, 1887.

157,829. (Nomorlelf Patentedin Germany May 2, 1888, No. 25,882, and January 9, 1884, No. 165,835; in England January 14, 1885, No. 536, and in Austria-Hun- Application filed March 5, 1885. Serial No.

13, 1885, N0. 32,138, in Franco December gary March 6, 1885, /227 and XIX, 590, and March I, 1885, 35/231. and XIX, 593.

To all whom it may concern/.-

Be it known that 1, PAUL VON JANK, a subject of the Emperor of Austria-Hungary, and residing at Totis, Austria-Hungary, haveinvented certain Improvements in Finger-Boards for Musical Instruments, (for which I have obtained German Patents No. 25, 282, dated May 2, 1883, and No. 32,138, dated January 13, 1885 5 French Patent No. 165,835, dated December 9, 1884; British Patent No. 536, dated J anuary 14, 1885, and Austro-Hungarian patents of March 6 and 7, 1885,) of which the following is a specification.

My invention consists of an improved construction' of key-board or finger-board and their keys for musical instruments-such as pianos-the main object of my invention being to so construct the key-board or fingerboard and their keys as to facilitate the operation of playing.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a perspective view of my improved keys and 4 their arrangement to form a key-board orfinger-board for a piano or other musical instrument. Fig. 2 is an end view of the key-board or finger-board, Figs. 3 and 4 are detached Y plates on its side views, of the two forms of key-levers. Fig. 5 isa face view of one of the keys or touchlever. Fig. 6 illustrates in plan, side, and end view one of the.touch-plates drawn to about full size; and Fig. 7 is a diagrammatic plan view of two octaves of my keyboard or finger-board.

The finger-board comprises two sets of keylevers, L, Fig. 3, and L, Fig. 4:, and each lever, which is made in stair-like form with three steps, carries three touch-plates or keys, one on each step. Each of the levers L has three keys or touch-plates, k, W, and k while each of the levers L has three keys or touchplates, 7c, and 70. Each key or touch-plate is double the width of its lever, and spaces are left intervening between the several keys or touch-plates of each lever, so that when the two kinds of levers are arranged side by side and alternating with each other, as shown in Fig. 1, the keys or touch-plates of one lever will occupy the spaces between the keys of adjacent levers, and the keys or touchplates will overlap and cover the intervening parts of those adjacent levers. It will thus be seen that the keys or touch-plates are arranged in six rows-three touch-plates for each key-lever or musical note. In the present instance I have shown the levers L with their touch-plates as corresponding in each octave to the musical notes 0, D, vE, F-sharp, G- sharp, and A sharp, while the levers L are for C-sharp, D sharp, F, G, A, and B, as shown in the diagram, Fig. 7. This arrangement may of course be reversed.

Between the adjoining keys or touch-plates of each row are intervals of full tones, while any two adjoining rows cover the whole chromatic scale.

In order to facilitate the distinction of the different keys, those corresponding to the black keys of an ordinary piano for the sharps and flats are marked with black lines, as shown in Figs. 1 and 7.

The touch-plates, and, in fact, the whole keys, are arranged at a slight inclination downward toward the player, as shown in Figs. l to 4, in order that the piano may be played with less exertion than ordinary pianos, for the inclined portion of the keys allows of an inclined downstroke being used, so that the strong muscles of the arm are utilized to the best advantage. The arrangement of the keys and their inclined position also allow of an easy and convenient position of the hands in playing. I prefer to make the angle of inclination about seven degrees from a horizontal line.

Each touch-plate or key, as more fully shown in the enlarged view, Fig. 6, is rounded off at the edges, both at the front and sides, to the extent that only about half the upper surface of the plate presents a plane or surface for the purpose of obtaining greater certainty of touch.

I am aware that it has been heretofore proposed to construct key-boards with several rows of touch-plates in connected sets. This I do not claim, broadly; but

I claim as my invention-- 1. A finger-board having keys slanting downward toward the player, substantially as and for the purpose described.

2. A finger-board having keys slantingdown- 5 ward toward the player, and arranged in stair like form in six rows in different levels, the first, third, and fifth rows belonging to one set of notes,

While the second, fourth, and sixth notes, sub- 

